Calvin a.k.a. Austin

One of the highlights of my weeks in recent months has been the writing prompts that my English teacher friend Carolyn has her students do. Writing prompts are a way to get the students to express their creativity and thoughts without judgment or "research paper quality" techniques. Both of the English teachers in our school do this on a daily basis, and we think that the recent increase in passing the state graduating requirement exam is due, in part, to this teaching strategy.

On to the reason I am posting this. Carolyn has funny students. She also has sensitive and thoughtful students. Today's writing prompt is from one of her funny students: Austin. Without further "adeu," here is something he wrote recently. If you must picture someone (since all stories have more meaning when we know the characters involved), picture the infamous cartoon character, Calvin. Some of you younger folks probably need to google him.

"So for the Expository thing we're supposed to type something in step by step form of something we are good at. I myself am very good at getting myself out of s*** or sneaking out of class, but since I can't really give a step by step of how to do that, I was going to give a step by step of how to stare off into space and procrastinate the majority of the class period in order to get behind in work for the rest of the quarter.

The first step that makes this process ten times easier is having Attention Deficit Disorder, so if you are seated by a window in class, or if you are put by a female with shiny jewelry in her ears or around her neck, you'll be distracted the entire time.  You can also run around and dip out of classes as long as you're quiet enough and have enough charisma to buy yourself out of trouble if you get caught.  Always try to keep a smile.

You can have an overactive imagination and end up overthinking things that were said in class until you're caught staring off into space.  Before you know it, you have eight days left to complete four classes you haven't done s**** in. I do not recommend doing these things, but this is one of the things I have found that I have a strong talent in, and actually choose to type up, because I think that my other talent of singing 90's Hip Hop in the shower just simply cannot be taught."

Calvin, a.k.a. Austin, speaks for many of our Harris Academy students.